The William & Mary Alumni Boston Chapter selected this novel set in German-occupied Poland at the end of the Second World War. It tells the story of three different journeys that intertwine and complement one another. First there is the Emmerich family, prosperous German farmers in East Prussia with the elderly father and eldest sons off fighting, the women and children flee west to safety from the Russian army taking with them a Scottish POW. Then there is Uri, a Jew who escaped from the prison trains and has spent two years taking on the uniforms and identities of various German officers both for survival and sabotage. Finally there is Cecille, a French Jewish woman forced with her fellow prisoners on a death march (although this is the least well-realized of the three storylines).

Bohjalian does not shrink from the details of all that was horrible about the war and the Holocaust. Yet, in the end this is a book about hope. After tearing us down, Bohjalian builds us back up with the romance of 18-year old Anna Emmerich and the Scottish airman Callum, the persistence of Cecille, the bravery of Uri and many small, kind acts. The one thing I wish the author had not done was to distance the Emmerich's so much from Nazism. It seems a cop-out that many authors/filmmakers fall on is the "good German" instead of trying to find humanity or promise of redemption in those who adhered to this evil ideology.

All in all a gripping and well-written novel. ( )

This book was inspired in part by an actual diary a friend asked Bohjalian to read in 1998; it had been kept by his friend’s East Prussian grandmother from 1920 to 1945. Bohjalian artfully fleshed out a story describing the relentless horror and barbarism of WWII and a family torn apart by war. In an interview he indicated these were his favorite characters that he has ever spent time with and that is reflected in the quality of the writing and in how compelling the story is. He also indicated it is is favorite of the twelve books he as written and he feels he has finally done the characters justice. I agree. This is my favorite of his books that I have read. Well done. ( )

GHASTLY. ( )

I thought this was really an excellent book, every bit as good as Midwives and The Double Bind by the same author. The story takes place on the eastern European front in the first few months of 1945, as Germany is being slowly defeated by the invading Russians and the British and American allies coming in from the west. Every able-bodied man is being drafted to help repel the Russians and their families are fleeing to the east to await their fate...but they aren't sure if the victors will be the Nazis or the Americans, but they know they must flee the barbaric Russians. I really enjoyed this because it focuses on a part of the war that I didn't know that much about. And I also enjoyed the plot development as the Germans realize that their Reich is drawing to a close and they are faced with an uncertain future. ( )

This book seems to me to be a cross between a romance and a "Boy's Own Adventure", with a lot of graphic violence thrown in. I am not really a big reader of either romances or war novels, and I shut my eyes in the movies when the violent bits come on. Therefore, this book won't be on my "favourites" list. I thought afterwards, that it read more like the script of a tele-movie than a conventional novel - lots of action, suspense, romance (and sex), moving on all the time and never dwelling too long in one physical or conceptual place.

Nonetheless, it did offer some interesting insights, reflecting on the futility and stupidity of nationalism and war, and the transcendence of individual human relationships.

Also, seeing WWII from a German or Polish perspective is relatively rare in popular American literature. (Although it's interesting that "Stones from the River" by Hegi, which is also a story of the WWII treatment of the Jews, told from an "ordinary" German person's perspective, has been well received in America. I wonder if Mr Bohjalian read that book?)

This is my first Bohjalian book, and I think I need to read more of his work, in different genres, before I make a judgment about whether I'll regularly visit the "B" section in my local library. This one was easy to keep "reading" - I had uploaded it from the 10 library CDs onto my iPod and I listened while I had my daily exercise. Maybe if I was actually reading it I would have had a slightly different attitude?? ( )